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Sunday, December 11, 2016

The Faithful Shall be Made Strong

Saturday night, Kiera and I ran to the Temple and made it there 5 minutes till 8:00 pm, just in time to do initiatories. We love doing initiatories because with 9 kids it gets tough to make it to a full endowment session every week. After initiatories we decided to meet up in the Celestial room. While sitting there, as I waited for Kiera, a few things I read this week came to my mind.

D&C 97:15-16

15 And inasmuch as my people build a house unto me in the name of the Lord, and do not suffer any unclean thing to come into it, that it be not defiled, my glory shall rest upon it;

16 Yea, and my presence shall be there, for I will come into it, and all the pure in heart that shall come into it shall see God. http://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/97?lang=eng"But once the saints had built a holy house for the Lord to use, he and his messengers visited that house to give instruction and confer keys. It was to the Kirtland Temple, the first holy temple of this dispensation, that Jehovah came on April 3, 1836, to be followed by Elias, Elijah, and Moses, each of which angelic ministrants conferred keys and powers upon their earthly fellow laborers. And so we turn to the Kirtland Temple to see the literal nature of these promises that the pure in heart shall see God, and what happened in the Kirtland Temple is but illustrative of what can be in any of the Lord's houses whenever his worshiping saints generate the faith to pull down from heaven these same heavenly manifestations. (Seek the Face of the Lord Always, Bruce R. McConkie http://scottwoodward.org/Talks/html/McConkie,%20Bruce%20R/McConkieBR_SeekTheFaceOfTheLordAlways.html)

As I sat there and pondered those words, I started to pray and put greater energy, conviction, and confidence into my prayer. I really tried to visualize being pure in heart and being taught from on High. Kiera interrupted my prayer when she came into the room (my White Angel 😇), but I still felt really good about my prayer and the sense of connection that I felt. I have a long way to go obviously, but there is no better time then now, to redouble my efforts.

We said our couple prayer together and then we said our personal prayers. Then, I picked up the scriptures. I usually like to read a particular chapter in the D&C, but today I felt strongly to just open the scriptures and read wherever I opened to. This is where I was led to.

D&C 66:8-9 8 Let my servant Samuel H. Smith go with you, and forsake him not, and give him thine instructions; and he that is faithful shall be made strong in every place; and I, the Lord, will go with you.9 Lay your hands upon the sick, and they shall recover. Return not till I, the Lord, shall send you. Be patient in affliction. Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. http://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/66?lang=eng

My heart burned as I read the words, "he that is faithful shall be made strong in every place" and then "I, the Lord, will go with you." Wow, how often do we need greater strength and to have the Savior of the world to go with us? We need to strive for greater faithfulness everyday and if we do, here we are promised both strength in all places and that He will go with us. The next verse testified to my heart of the fruits of the faithful who are strengthened in and by the Lord.

When I got home, I started to write down my experience, and the spirit prompted me to continue to read the last few verses...

D&C 66:11-13

11 Keep these sayings, for they are true and faithful; and thou shalt magnify thine office, and push many people to Zion with songs of everlasting joy upon their heads.

12 Continue in these things even unto the end, and you shall have a crown of eternal life at the right hand of my Father, who is full of grace and truth.

My heart swelled and the tears came. I can think of no greater fulfilment than to be an instrument in The Lord's hands in bringing souls unto Him and unto Zion. We are living in the last days and if we are not "about [our] Father’s business" (Luke 2:49) then it is time to re-evaluate our priorities and make a major course correction in our lives. Verse 12 contains the ultimate reward and sufficient motivation to make this course correction, "you shall have a crown of eternal life."

I am ready to make the necessary changes for this course correction, ARE YOU?